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Can we stop with the balls references already?
- Thread starter ChadTheRat
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Incorrect. "Balls to the wall" is from the shape of airplane accelerators. It's the airforce equivalent of "pedal to the metal". Nothing to do with cannons. "Balls out" refers to the rotation speed indicator on steam engines.
OP: That would be great, but it isn't likely to happen given the advanced age and intellectual inflexibility of most posters here. As is abundantly evident by their responses.
You could always describe the sound as "spunky"
What are we gonna do with the big muff family? 
Really, this is what we are worried about? Our society is reaching new lows by the minute. Plus, I am offended by "punch," far too violent for my purposes.
No thanks, I am not going to change my language just because you don't like it. This is reality.
Huh.... well, my personal views:
- I come from a very sheltered background where my family never swore, never used derogatory terms to describe anyone, never mentioned genitalia, never talked about passing gas even... etc.
So for me it was a quick learn situation when I started working as a bass player and meeting musicians who, pretty commonly, talked very differently than I did. I still don't often talk this way, but I certainly grew accustomed to it and understand the lingo - genital references et al.
FWIW - my 2 teenage daughters (14, twins) don't swear, but are otherwise pretty unsheltered from regular life and language.
Recently one of them was talking about her own guitar tone (they are musicians too) and how she was finally happy because it had balls. I was like, yea, sure enough... cool. I didn't teach her that, but I get her point.
I did ask her about it - and they both told me that it's completely normal now to ignore gender when talking about that stuff - so, if I may be crude for a minute here (please understand my point of writing this stuff out):
girls talk about their balls just as much as guys do - because it's a reference to gutsiness... to grittiness... to strength... to not being whimpy - no matter your gender.
They also used the female genital P word to represent being whimpy. It was weird hearing this from them LoL - but I actually have heard similar examples among my female musician friends for years, so I guess it goes with it.
Then there's the phrase that guys used to say when mouthing off someone - #### me, starts with B. I've heard numerous girls say that to someone else over the past couple years of bringing my kids to high school. Not something to be proud of LoL... but interesting information all the same in it's lack of gender accuracy.
And again, I'm focusing on the fact that musicians, rock musicians at least, tend to be more vulgar than, say, classical violinists. I can vouch for that because I am both of those... and while there are exceptions to those rules... it's on average sorta true. Despite that norm, I knew classical musicians who were super crude, and I was pretty tame compared to most of the rock musicians I worked with.
Now I'm not saying it's not offensive to women or to anyone else - I'm saying it seems to have become a common place phrase that has no literal reference to it's actual origin other than the side effect of what that means. And my daughters told me they own the phrases as much as guys do, and it's sexist for anyone to assume that such a phrase can only refer to a male here in 2020.
Ah - I find it bizarre , but somewhat refreshing, to be educated about teenage angst and how wrong my age of adults is in our beliefs..... by my teenage daughters.
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I am impressed! I did not expect this thread to pop off like this.
So far we have learned:
"Balls out" "balls to the walls" and "big brass balls" actually originate from an engineering background.
People these days (myself included) are a bit hyper sensitive.
Some people are even hyper sensitive to others' hyper sensitivity.
So far we have learned:
"Balls out" "balls to the walls" and "big brass balls" actually originate from an engineering background.
People these days (myself included) are a bit hyper sensitive.
Some people are even hyper sensitive to others' hyper sensitivity.
I prefer a bass tone with booty myself; especially that thicc, phat, smooth, round, bootyliciousness that just gives me that "Mmmmf, oh YEAH!!!" feeling below the belt. Ballsy tone doesn't do it for me.
(And I may or may not be mildly trolling right now.)
(And I may or may not be mildly trolling right now.)
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After all, I bought a bottle of "nut sauce" from L&M. And look at the sheer number of guitar fuzz/distortion/overdrive pedals there are that have extremely vulgar names...
If anyone takes offense to this then they should probably not work with musicians or go go music stores or look on craigslist in the musical instruments section.
I mean, seriously - "Way Huge Swollen Pickle" is a very popular product.
If anyone takes offense to this then they should probably not work with musicians or go go music stores or look on craigslist in the musical instruments section.
I mean, seriously - "Way Huge Swollen Pickle" is a very popular product.
OP, are you kidding? "Balls", as a slang word that describes, e.g., power, has been used for so long that it has virtually lost its sexual innuendo, much the same as "suck" (as in "this really sucks"). Don't be one of those who are offended by everything!
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